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Build a Baby!

Our Psychology book briefly discusses the "Mozart effect" and parents' desire to enhance their child's cognitive development...basically, they want to make their child smarter. So, the case: Playing Mozart improves intellectual ability. I think this classifies as an extraordinary claim in need of extraordinary evidence. The study done by Rauscher, Shaw & Ky that launched the "Mozart effect" has failed to pass the replicability and falsifiability tests of scientific reasoning. Unfortunately, this study provided a lucrative opportunity for press and toy companies, elevating an underdeveloped idea to a level of scientific proof. The book even cites the seemingly imprudent act of a former Georgia Governor that added money to a state budget in order to provide all new babies with a free Mozart CD. By applying the Occam's Razor principle, suggests that maybe the extra brain stimulation that music provides accounts for the temporary cognitive improvements.
However, I think that the this Mozart craze isn't a complete waste. In a BBC article "The Mozart Effect Debunked," it reinforces the evidence from our book that Mozart music does not make babies smarter. However, it also interviews children who are frequently exposed to Mozart's music and asks them what they think about it. Their responses are all positive and they seem to have developed an appreciation for Mozart's classical style of music, which I personally think it great. If anything, the Mozart craze can maybe help children be more accepting of music (and maybe other things too) that is not typically their favorite.